Hawley Updates “Doctor Doom,” “Cat’s Cradle”

Two years ago, “Fargo” and “Legion” showrunner Noah Hawley revealed he was developing a script for a film based on classic Marvel villain Doctor Doom for 20th Century Fox.

Then the Disney-Fox deal happened and all of Fox’s “X-Men” and “Fantastic Four”-related projects, including Hawley’s script, seemed to become stuck in limbo.

This week at a panel at SXSW, Hawley gave an update on the film and confirmed sadly that it has stalled. He also revealed he met with Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige who inquired whether Hawley was still working on the script. Hawley replied “Should I still be working on it?” to which no answer was given.

Hawley also teased some story details about his take, which he built as a geopolitical thriller which follows the ins and outs of Victor von Doom’s pressures as the king of the fictional Eastern European country Latveria which he’s just put a dome over. He later invites a female journalist to be his voice to the world.

Hawley also reported joked that Feige wouldn’t reveal the ‘thousand-year plan’ for the Marvel Cinematic Universe to him.

He also offered a brief update on the FX series adaptation of Kurt Vonnegut’s “Cat’s Cradle” which he indicates won’t begin filming until sometime next year – the delays due to Hawley’s hectic schedule. Hawley says he has finished the first script and believes it will be a seven- or eight-hour limited series.